Poetry and Rhymes Educational Books, Toys

Poetry and Rhymes

Library of Children's Song Classics

Library of Children's Song Classics

by Amy Appleby

For ages all ages

All parents have been through this: you start humming a favorite tune from your childhood, maybe you manage to recall a couple of verses, but then your mind goes blank. Meanwhile, your little one is (read more)

The Runaway Bunny

The Runaway Bunny

by Margaret Wise Brown

For ages birth+

This bedtime favorite is as beautiful a love poem as has ever been written. The story's imaginary game of hide-and-seek between a little bunny and his mother appeals to children's dreams of running (read more)

One Fish, Two Fish

One Fish, Two Fish

by Dr. Seuss

For ages 1+ years

It's a silly book. It's a strange book. It's the perfect introduction to Dr. Seuss . In this most nonsensical of nonsense poems, Dr. Seuss teaches rhythm, rhyme and the delights of manipulating (read more)

Family of Poems: My Favorite Poetry for Children

Family of Poems: My Favorite Poetry for Children

by Caroline Kennedy

For ages 2-6 years

We all probably have, somewhere upon our shelves, a weighty anthology of poetry that we last opened when studying for a college English exam. Now that we are parents, it has crossed our minds that (read more)

Beast Feast

Beast Feast

by Douglas Florian

For ages 2-6 years

Not only are these fantastic short poems amusing, but they are almost instantly memorizable. And, trust us, the sound of that little voice you love so much trilling off a little verse will really (read more)

Where the Sidewalk Ends

Where the Sidewalk Ends

by Shel Silverstein

For ages 2-6 years

You surely remember this simply spectacular collection of poetry from when you were (ahem) younger. Here's a hint - if you don't want to count exactly how many decades ago that was, don't buy the (read more)

If Not for the Cat

If Not for the Cat

by Jack Prelutsky

For ages 2-6 years

You could easily think that a collection of haikus is well beyond the ken of our adored preschool set. You could also be wrong. Yes, this is a book you should keep around on the shelves for some (read more)

The Everyman Book of Nonsense Verse

The Everyman Book of Nonsense Verse

by Louise Guinness

For ages 3-6 years

Okay, we admit it: we think this elegant volume makes a wonderful gift, but we mean that is really a gift for parents. But preschoolers themselves will love it too, and sharing it with their (read more)

Really Big Words

Really Big Words

by Magnetic Poetry

For ages 3-6 years

Your little one is fully versed (pun intended) in the joys of rhythm and rhyme, so let him loose! Speak his mind (or write it) and see what clever little thoughts he's got in there. You already (read more)

Mother Goose: The Original Volland Edition

Mother Goose: The Original Volland Edition

by Eulalie Osgood Grover and illustrated by Frederick Richardson

For ages 2-6 years

This is the definitive source for all of the Mother Goose standards. It's the source material, the standard line upon which all the other books riff. It is old-fashioned but still engaging, the (read more)

Sylvia Long's Mother Goose

Sylvia Long's Mother Goose

by illustrated by Sylvia Long

For ages 2-6 years

This quite modern take on the classic rhymes is simply breathtakingly lovely. The pen and watercolor drawings just blow us away. Some lesser known rhymes are mixed in, and many of the poems are (read more)

My First Real Mother Goose

My First Real Mother Goose

by illustrated by Blanche Fish Wright

For ages 2-6 years

This board book version has almost 20 of the best known rhymes, and it makes them come alive through the vivid, immediately engaging illustrations. The look of the characters is older where it needs (read more)

A Child's Treasury of Nursery Rhymes

A Child's Treasury of Nursery Rhymes

by Kady MacDonald Denton

For ages 2-6 years

This volume truly has it all. There are four sections, beginning with the easiest babyhood rhymes and games, moving through the Mother Goose classics to the nonsense chants and games of the (read more)

Each Peach Pear Plum

Each Peach Pear Plum

by Janet and Allan Ahlberg

For ages 2-6 years

This charmingly illustrated book is really a game of "I Spy" masquerading as a romp through the nursery rhyme and other classic folk tale favorites. You can certainly read it happily to a very (read more)

Classic Nursery Rhymes

Classic Nursery Rhymes

by Susie Tallman

For ages 2-6 years

Okay, we admit it. We do become a mite desperate at times for someone (anyone) other than us to do the next round of Humpty, Dumpty. Susie Tallman, to the rescue. This CD has 37 (!) tracks of (read more)

Hush Little Baby

Hush Little Baby

by Sylvia Long

For ages 2-6 years

Sylvia Long reworks the classic lullaby we all know and love to wonderful effect. In truth, we're usually a bit wary of attempts to improve on childhood classics. But Long's new lyrics stand on (read more)

Pio Peep! Traditional Spanish Nursery Rhymes

Pio Peep! Traditional Spanish Nursery Rhymes

by Alma Flor Ada

For ages 2-6 years

We adore nursery rhymes, especially this lovely collection of Latin American poems, songs, rhymes for children. Many of the Spanish language children's books available today are translations of (read more)

Read-Aloud Rhymes for the Very Young

Read-Aloud Rhymes for the Very Young

by Knopf Books for Young Readers

For ages 18 months - 6 years

Poems about picnics, pretending, and puppies make this book the book to introduce little ones to poetry about the world around them. Jack Prelutsky, one of today's most respected children's poets, (read more)

In Aunt Giraffe's Green Garden & Frogs Wore Red Suspenders

In Aunt Giraffe's Green Garden & Frogs Wore Red Suspenders

by Jack Prelutsky

For ages 2 to 6 years

Yes, you're right. This is an audio CD, not a book. But it's the best audio CD of the year reading one of the best books of 2007, as well as one of the best books of two years ago! And it features (read more)

Jabberwocky

Jabberwocky

by Lewis Carroll

For ages 4 to 6 years

This brilliant adaptation of Lewis Carroll's famous grown-up poem will knock the socks of both parent readers and preschooler listeners. The magic of Carroll's verse is that its nonsense words tell (read more)

Over the River and Through the Wood: A Thanksgiving Poem

Over the River and Through the Wood: A Thanksgiving Poem

by Lydia Maria Child

For ages

The first Thanksgiving may have taken place in the Seventeenth Century, but Thanksgiving was reborn as a national holiday in the Nineteenth Century - and here is its most famous ode. Originally (read more)

The Night Before Christmas

The Night Before Christmas

by Clement C. Moore

For ages

Most of us have a preferred version of The Night Before Christmas. All we can do is humbly tell you about our own favorite, the loveliest we've ever seen! The pictures are sweet and old-fashioned, (read more)

Dog Days: Rhymes Around the Year

Dog Days: Rhymes Around the Year

by Jack Prelutsky

For ages

We do revere Jack Prelutsky's poems, even if they haven't been as close to our hearts for as long as, say, Sendak's Chicken Soup with Rice. And when Mr. Prelutsky turns his talents towards the (read more)

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

by Robert Frost

For ages

Susan Jeffers's exquisite pictures of the snowy forest and its creatures bring this beloved poem to life for small readers. It's a beautiful reading experience for kids and grownups, and we can (read more)

Elephants Never Forget!

Elephants Never Forget!

by Anushka Ravishankar

For ages 4-8 years

This is a brand-new book with an old-fashioned soul. It seems almost like a fable that Aesop lost track of, or at least a story from the 50s that just got a retro re-do. The illustrations in the (read more)

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